| The Institute for Bioengineering
and Bioscience (IBB), a catalyst for innovative biomedical engineering
and bioscience research at the Georgia Institute of Technology, received
a $15,000 grant from the DeKalb County Development Authority to develop
biotechnology kits for use in local area schools. The program will
be developed in partnership with the DeKalb County Office of Economic Development,
the DeKalb County School System, and Georgia Bio. The idea for the
biotechnology modules grew out of the Georgia Tech/Emory Center for the
Engineering of Living Tissues (GTEC)’s biotechnology middle school camp,
which provides opportunities for 20 students each year to spend a week
at IBB learning about the latest developments in the field of bioengineering.
The grant is enabling IBB
to share the curriculum piloted during the biotechnology summer camp and
transition it into general use in middle and high school classrooms.
The program development is three-fold. First, the biotechnology camp
curriculum was translated into portable learning units that can be used
in any classroom and taught either as a week-long academic enrichment activity
or used as individual lessons to supplement the classroom environment.
Second, IBB will host a training program that was piloted with a core group
of teachers from the DeKalb County School System in June 2008. These
teachers were fully trained in utilization of the biotechnology kits as
well as in various scientific techniques and equipment usage. Lastly,
the core group of teachers will provide training to teachers at the local
level so that they too are equipped with the knowledge necessary to teach
the biotechnology modules and use the kits in their classrooms.
Funding from the DeKalb County
Development Authority will be used to support the development of the kits
and curriculum for the teacher training, while IBB will take responsibility
for administration of the program. |
